NYC airports show lapses as city is on high alert

Security screeners at JFK and Newark airports have routinely failed to identify and remove weapons and bombs being smuggled by undercover agents posing as airline passengers.

One source familiar with security practices at the New York area’s two international airports was quoted by the New York Post about the continued oversights by Transportation Security Administration workers, revealed in a new report released days before the ISIS strikes in France.

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“The abject and consistent failures of TSA screeners should frighten everyone, particularly when they are considered in terms of recent terrorist acts that occurred in Paris,” the source was quoted in the Post, which added that the new report stated that eight airports around the nation flunked secret safety tests conducted by the Department of Homeland Security.

DHS Inspector General Joe Roth said the locations of those eight airports had been classified as “secret” to prevent potential damage to national security, the Post claimed, adding that its source said the airports listed in the report included both Kennedy and Newark.

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That new report comes as the New York City area beefs up security following last Friday’s attacks in Paris, the Wall Street Journal reported, adding that Gov. Andrew Cuomo stated on Saturday that he has directed state agencies to be on high alert following the attacks and has increased security protocols on trains and bridges and at popular tourists locations.

“Thank God there’s no specific threats toward New York City that we know of,” Mayor de Blasio was quoted by the Journal. “We believe this … is isolated to Paris.”

Additional uniformed and plainclothes Metropolitan Transportation Authority officers will be located at Penn Station, Grand Central Terminal and other major stations serving the Metro-North Railroad and Long Island Rail Road network, the Wall Street Journal stated, adding that officials said there will also be an increase in police canine teams and additional security checks of bags.